You may have seen reports that SIG SAUER has closed its German factory, with some even going as far as to say that they are going out of business. While it is indeed true that they are closing their operation in Eckernförde, Germany, SIG continues to do quite well at their international headquarters in Newington, New Hampshire on the old Pease AFB facility.
Although the company is owned by Germans, if you’ve been paying attention, the writing has been on the wall for years. As the German government has made it more difficult to do business, SIG has moved more and more of the company to the US.
The company has also transitioned itself from firearms to an arms manufacturer as they’ve pursued defense contracts in addition to their commercial line and expanded into ammunition and optics.
This seems to be the culmination of years of planning rather than an abrupt decision based on factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
While it’s unfortunate that about 130 jobs will be lost, many of which are skilled craftsmen who have hand built guns for generations, SIG still has over 2,300 employees here in America across multiple facilities in several states.
SIG will realign how they conduct business in Germany but they continue to do business in 88 countries.
SIG SAUER, Inc. issued this statement:
L & O Holding group has announced that it is closing its SIG SAUER, GmbH (Germany) division in Eckernförde, Germany. L&O Holding owns and operates numerous business units in the defense and hunting market including SIG SAUER, GmbH (Germany), SIG SAUER, Inc. (U.S.A.), and German Sports Group, GmbH (GSG), among others.
SIG SAUER, Inc. operations in the U.S. will continue business as usual. The U.S. based division, headquartered in Newington, New Hampshire, has over 2,300 employees throughout 9 facilities in New Hampshire, Arkansas and Oregon where the company designs and manufactures firearms, ammunition, optics, suppressors and air guns. Further, in New Hampshire, the company operates one of the most advanced training facilities in the world, SIG SAUER Academy.
SIG SAUER, Inc. markets and distributes its U.S. made products in 88 countries. The SIG SAUER, Inc. International Sales Team, based in Europe, will expand its responsibilities to include the German market. German Sports Group (GSG), the current commercial distributor in Germany for SIG SAUER, Inc. optics, ammunition and air guns will expand its role to include commercial firearm sales in Germany.
